TALKING POINTS FOR DDI SOUTH AFRICA: THE ANC'S COMMUNIST TIES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91B00874R000100200015-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 16, 2011
• Sequence Number: 15
• Publication Date: July 14, 1986
• Content Type: MISC

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/09/16: CIA-RDP91 B00874R000100200015-4
TALKING POINTS FOR DDI
South Africa: The ANC's Communist Ties
We do not not believe at the present time that the African National
Congress is dominated by Communists, although Communists in the
ANC leadership exert considerable influence and the ANC depends on
the Soviet Bloc for almost all of its military aid. The orientation of
any future ANC-dominated government in South Africa would depend to a
large degree on the means by which it came to power. The
more violent and prolonged the struggle, the more likely, in our
judgment, that the regime would be Marxist, pro-Soviet, and
anti-Western.
SACP and SACTU Influence in the ANC
The ANC (formed in 1912) has had close ties with the South African
Communist Party (formed in 1921) since the 1920s.
-- The ANC worked closely with SACP-controlled groups
during the civil disobedience campaigns of the 1950s.
-- Most black Communists who had not already done so joined
the ANC after the SACP was banned in 1950. The ANC
opened its- ranks to all racial groups in 1969, at which
time many white Communists joined.
-- ANC-SACP bonds were strengthened when the ANC was
banned in 1960 and forced into exile several years
later. The SACP, more experienced at operating in
exile and with wider international contacts, helped
find sources of economic and military aid for the ANC.
The SACP today is a pro-Soviet, semisecret party headquartered in London
and well-represented in the ANC leadership.
-- Although we cannot identify with full confidence all
SACP members in the ANC, we estimate that Communists
probably hold somewhat over half the seats on the
ANC's National Executive Committee (NEC). The NEC, however,
only meets several times a year.
-- In our judgment, perhaps as much as 25 percent of
the ANC's total membership is Communist.*
The ANC's political manifesto--the 1955 Freedom Charter--is a mildly
socialistic and deliberately vague document designed to attract the
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-- SACP influence probably is strongest in the ANC's military
and propaganda wings. Most ANC propaganda literature and
radio broadcasts are virulently anti-Western and
strongly pro-Soviet.
-- Both Communist and non-Communist veteran ANC officials
have worked for years to restrain a large group of
young black, militant nationalists in lower ranks
who prefer a hard-core terrorist campaign directed
soley at white civilians.
The SACP-controlled South African Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU)
also acts as an ally of the ANC. SACTU, however, has little
influence in the South African organized labor movement, and little
hope of gaining any.
-- SACTU was founded in 1954 and currently is operating in
self-imposed exile in Zambia. SACTU acts as the ANC's
labor wing, but is organizationally separate.
-- SACTU is a member of the Soviet-controlled World
Federation of Trade U:nions (WFTU), and almost all
SACTU leaders are SACP members.
Soviet Bloc Support to.the ANC
The Soviet Bloc provides over 90 percent of the ANC's military needs,
including virtually all ANC weapons and equipment.
-- Most ANC guerrilla training is conducted by Cuban
and East German military advisers at several camps
in Angola.
-- The best ANC military recruits also receive advanced
training in the Soviet Union, East Germany, and
Cuba.
The Soviet Union also gives some nonmilitary assistance to the
ANC, although other sources provide the bulk of this support.
-- The Soviet Union and East European states provide
some 200 scholarships a year for nonmilitary courses
in the Soviet Bloc.
-- Soviet-aligned Communist parties in other areas of the
broadest possible coalition of multiracial, antiapartheid forces.
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 Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/09/16: CIA-RDP91 B00874R000100200015-4
ANC Efforts to Limit Communist Influence
Non-Communist ANC officials, led by President Oliver Tambo, have
taken several steps aimed at limiting and controlling SACP
influence in the ANC. In our judgment, these moves have had some
success.
-- Despite its rhetoric, the ANC has sought improved relations
with China and the West. Tambo, for example, met
with former President Carter in Zambia in January
1986.
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Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/09/16: CIA-RDP91 B00874R000100200015-4